10:26. And in the tribe of the sons of Aser, the prince was Phegiel the son of Ochran.
10:27. And in the tribe of the sons of Nephtali, the prince was Ahira the son of Enan.
10:28. This was the order of the camps, and marches of the children of Israel by their troops, when they set forward.
10:29. And Moses said to Hobab the son of Raguel the Madianite, his kinsman: We are going towards the place which the Lord will give us: come with us, that we may do thee good: for the Lord hath promised good things to Israel.
10:30. But he answered him: I will not go with thee, but I will return to my country, wherein I was born.
10:31. And he said: Do not leave us: for thou knowest in what places we should encamp in the wilderness, and thou shalt be our guide.
10:32. And if thou comest with us, we will give thee what is the best of the riches which the Lord shall deliver to us.
10:33. So they marched from the mount of the Lord three days' journey, and the ark of the covenant of the Lord went before them, for three days providing a place for the camp.
10:34. The cloud also of the Lord was over them by day when they marched.
10:35. And when the ark was lifted up, Moses said: Arise, O Lord, and let thy enemies be scattered, and let them that hate thee, flee from before thy face.
10:36. And when it was set down, he said: Return, O Lord, to the multitude of the host of Israel.
Numbers Chapter 11
The people murmur and are punished with fire. God appointeth seventy ancients for assistants to Moses. They prophesy. The people have their fill of flesh, but forthwith many die of the plague.
11:1. In the mean time there arose a murmuring of the people against the Lord, as it were repining at their fatigue. And when the Lord heard it he was angry. And the fire of the Lord being kindled against them, devoured them that were at the uttermost part of the camp.
11:2. And when the people cried to Moses, Moses prayed to the Lord, and the fire was swallowed up.
11:3. And he called the name of that place, The burning: for that the fire of the Lord had been kindled against them.
The burning… Hebrew, Taberah.
11:4. For a mixt multitude of people, that came up with them, burned with desire, sitting and weeping, the children of Israel also being joined with them, and said: Who shall give us flesh to eat?
A mixt multitude… These were people that came with them out of Egypt, who were not of the race of Israel; who, by their murmuring, drew also the children of Israel to murmur: this should teach us the danger of associating ourselves with the children of Egypt, that is, with the lovers and admirers of this wicked world.
11:5. We remember the fish that we ate in Egypt free cost: the cucumbers come into our mind, and the melons, and the leeks, and the onions, and the garlic.
11:6. Our soul is dry, our eyes behold nothing else but manna.
11:7. Now the manna was like coriander seed, of the colour of bdellium.
Bdellium… Bdellium, according to Pliny, 1.21, c. 9. was of the colour of a man's nail, white and bright.
11:8. And the people went about, and gathering it, ground it in a mill, or beat it in a mortar, and boiled it in a pot, and made cakes thereof of the taste of bread tempered with oil.
11:9. And when the dew fell in the night upon the camp, the manna also fell with it.
11:10. Now Moses heard the people weeping by their families, every one at the door of his tent. And the wrath of the Lord was exceedingly enkindled: to Moses also the thing seemed insupportable.
11:11. And he said to the Lord: Why hast thou afflicted thy servant? Wherefore do I not find favour before thee? And why hast thou laid the weight of all this people upon me?
11:12. Have I conceived all this multitude, or begotten them, that thou shouldst say to me: Carry them in thy bosom as the nurse is wont to carry the little infant, and bear them into the land, for which thou hast sworn to their fathers?
11:13. Whence should I have flesh to give to so great a multitude? They weep against me, saying: Give us flesh that we may eat.
11:14. I am not able alone to bear all this people, because it is too heavy for me.
11:15. But if it seem unto thee otherwise, I beseech thee to kill me, and let me find grace in thy eyes, that I be not afflicted with so great evils.
11:16. And the Lord said to Moses: Gather unto me seventy men of the ancients of Israel, whom thou knowest to be ancients and masters of the people: and thou shalt bring them to the door of the tabernacle of the covenant, and shalt make them stand there with thee,
Seventy men… This was the first institution of the council or senate, called the Sanhedrin, consisting of seventy or seventy-two senators or counsellors.
11:17. That I may come down and speak with thee: and I will take of thy spirit, and will give to them, that they may bear with thee the burden of the people, and thou mayest not be burthened alone.
11:18. And thou shalt say to the people: Be ye sanctified: to morrow you shall eat flesh: for I have heard you say: Who will give us flesh to eat? It was well with us in Egypt. That the Lord may give you flesh, and you may eat:
11:19. Not for one day, nor two, nor five, nor ten, no nor for twenty.
11:20. But even for a month of days, till it come out at your nostrils, and become loathsome to you, because you have cast off the Lord, who is in the midst of you, and have wept before him, saying: Why came we out of Egypt?
11:21. And Moses said: There are six hundred thousand footmen of this people, and sayest thou: I will give them flesh to eat a whole month?
11:22. Shall then a multitude of sheep and oxen be killed, that it may suffice for their food? or shall the fishes of the sea be gathered together to fill them?
11:23. And the Lord answered him: Is the hand of the Lord unable? Thou shalt presently see whether my word shall come to pass or no.
11:24. Moses therefore came, and told the people the words of the Lord, and assembled seventy men of the ancients of Israel, and made them to stand about the tabernacle.
11:25. And the Lord came down in a cloud, and spoke to him, taking away of the spirit that was in Moses, and giving to the seventy men. And when the spirit had rested on them they prophesied, nor did they cease afterwards.
11:26. Now there remained in the camp two of the men, of whom one was called Eldad, and the other Medad, upon whom the spirit rested; for they also had been enrolled, but were not gone forth to the tabernacle.
11:27. And when they prophesied in the camp, there ran a young man, and told Moses, saying: Eldad and Medad prophesy in the camp.
11:28. Forthwith Josue the son of Nun, the minister of Moses, and chosen out of many, said: My lord Moses forbid them.
11:29. But he said: Why hast thou emulation for me? O that all the people might prophesy, and that the Lord would give them his spirit!
11:30. And Moses returned, with the ancients of Israel, into the camp.
11:31. And a wind going out from the Lord, taking quails up beyond the sea brought them, and cast them into the camp for the space of one day's journey, on every side of the camp round about, and they flew in the air two cubits high above the ground.
11:32. The people therefore rising up all that day, and night, and the next day, gathered together of quails, he that did least, ten cores: and they dried them round about the camp.
11:33. As yet the flesh was between their teeth, neither had that kind of meat failed: when behold the wrath of the Lord being provoked against the people, struck them with an exceeding great plague.
11:34. And that place was called, The graves of lust: for there they buried the people that had lusted. And departing from the graves of lust, they came unto Haseroth, and abode there.
The graves of lust… Or, the sepulchres of concupiscence: so called from their irregular desire of flesh. In Hebrew, Kibroth. Hattaavah.
Numbers Chapter 12
Mary and Aaron murmur against Moses, whom God praiseth above other prophets. Mary being struck with leprosy, Aaron confesseth his fault. Moses prayeth for her, and after seven days' separation from the camp, she is restored.
12:1. And Mary and Aaron spoke against Moses, because of his wife the Ethiopian,
Ethiopian… Sephora the wife of Moses was of Madian, which bordered upon the land of Chus or Ethiopia: where note, that the Ethiopia here spoken of is not that of Africa but that of Arabia.
12:2. And they said: Hath the Lord spoken by Moses only? Hath he not also spoken to us in like manner? And when the Lord heard this,
12:3. (For Moses was a man exceeding meek above all men that dwelt upon earth)
Exceeding meek… Moses being the meekest of men, would not contend for himself; therefore, God inspired him to write here his own defence: and the Holy Spirit, whose dictate he wrote, obliged him to declare the truth, though it was so much to his own praise.
12:4. Immediately he spoke to him, and to Aaron and Mary: Come out you three only to the tabernacle of the covenant. And when they were come out,
12:5. The Lord came down in a pillar of the cloud, and stood in the entry of the tabernacle calling to Aaron and Mary. And when they were come,
12:6. He said to them: Hear my words: if there be among you a prophet of the Lord, I will appear to him in a vision, or I will speak to him in a dream.
12:7. But it is not so with my servant Moses who is most faithful in all my house:
12:8. For I speak to him mouth to mouth: and plainly, and not by riddles and figures doth he see the Lord. Why then were you not afraid to speak ill of my servant Moses?
12:9. And being angry with them he went away:
12:10. The cloud also that was over the tabernacle departed: and behold Mary appeared white as snow with a leprosy. And when Aaron had looked on her, and saw her all covered with leprosy,
12:11. He said to Moses: I beseech thee, my lord, lay not upon us this sin, which we have foolishly committed:
12:12. Let her not be as one dead, and as an abortive that is cast forth from the mother's womb. Lo, now one half of her flesh is consumed with the leprosy.
12:13. And Moses cried to the Lord, saying O God, I beseech thee heal her.
12:14. And the Lord answered him: If her father had spitten upon her face, ought she not to have been ashamed for seven days at least? Let her be separated seven days without the camp, and afterwards she shall be called again.
12:15. Mary therefore was put out of the camp seven days: and the people moved not from that place until Mary was called again.
Numbers Chapter 13
The twelve spies are sent to view the land. The relation they make of it.
13:1. And the people marched from Haseroth, and pitched their tents in the desert of Pharan.
13:2. And there the Lord spoke to Moses, saying.
13:3. Send men to view the land of Chanaan, which I will give to the children of Israel, one of every tribe, of the rulers.
13:4. Moses did what the Lord had commanded, sending from the desert of Pharan, principal men, whose names are these:
13:5. Of the tribe of Ruben, Sammua the son of Zechur.
13:6. Of the tribe of Simeon, Saphat the son of Huri.
13:7. Of the tribe of Juda, Caleb the son of Jephone.
13:8. Of the tribe of Issachar, Igal the son of Joseph.
13:9. Of the tribe of Ephraim, Osee the son of Nun.
13:10. Of the tribe of Benjamin, Phalti the son of Raphu.
13:11. Of the tribe of Zabulon, Geddiel the son of Sodi.
13:12. Of the tribe of Joseph, of the sceptre of Manasses, Gaddi the son of Susi.
13:13. Of the tribe of Dan, Ammiel the son of Gemalli.
13:14. Of the tribe of Aser, Sthur the son of Michael.
13:15. Of the tribe of Nephtali, Nahabi the son of Vapsi.
13:16. Of the tribe of Gad, Guel the son of Machi.
13:17. These are the names of the men, whom Moses sent to view the land: and he called Osee the son of Nun, Josue.
13:18. And Moses sent them to view the land of Chanaan, and said to them: Go you up by the south side. And when you shall come to the mountains,
13:19. View the land, of what sort it is, and the people that are the inhabitants thereof, whether they be strong or weak: few in number or many:
13:20. The land itself, whether it be good or bad: what manner of cities, walled or without walls:
13:21. The ground, fat or barren, woody or without trees. Be of good courage, and bring us of the fruits of the land. Now it was the time when the firstripe grapes are fit to be eaten.
13:22. And when they were gone up, they viewed the land from the desert of Sin, unto Rohob as you enter into Emath.
13:23. And they went up at the south side, and came to Hebron, where were Achiman and Sisai and Tholmai the sons of Enac. For Hebron was built seven years before Tanis the city of Egypt.
13:24. And forward as far as the torrent of the cluster of grapes, they cut off a branch with its cluster of grapes, which two men carried upon a lever. They took also of the pomegranates and of the figs of that place:
13:25. Which was called Nehelescol, that is to say, the torrent of the cluster of grapes, because from thence the children of Israel had carried a cluster of grapes.
13:26. And they that went to spy out the land returned after forty days, having gone round all the country,
13:27. And came to Moses and Aaron and to all the assembly of the children of Israel to the desert of Pharan, which is in Cades. And speaking to them and to all the multitude, they shewed them the fruits of the land:
13:28. And they related and said: We came into the land to which thou sentest us, which in very deed floweth with milk and honey as may be known by these fruits:
13:29. But it hath very strong inhabitants, and the cities are great and walled. We saw there the race of Enac.
13:30. Amalec dwelleth in the south, the Hethite and the Jebusite and the Amorrhite in the mountains: but the Chanaanite abideth by the sea and near the streams of the Jordan.
13:31. In the mean time Caleb, to still the murmuring of the people that rose against Moses, said: Let us go up and possess the land, for we shall be able to conquer it.
13:32. But the others, that had been with him, said: No, we are not able to go up to this people, because they are stronger than we.
13:33. And they spoke ill of the land, which they had viewed, before the children of Israel, saying: The land which we have viewed, devoureth its inhabitants: the people, that we beheld are of a tall stature.
Spoke ill, etc… These men, who by their misrepresentations of the land of promise, discouraged the Israelites from attempting the conquest of it, were a figure of worldlings, who, by decrying or misrepresenting true devotion, discourage Christians from seeking in earnest and acquiring so great a good, and thereby securing to themselves a happy eternity.
13:34. There we saw certain monsters of the sons of Enac, of the giant kind: in comparison of whom, we seemed like locusts.
Numbers Chapter 14
The people murmur. God threateneth to destroy them. He is appeased by Moses, yet so as to exclude the murmurers from entering the promised land. The authors of the sedition are struck dead. The rest going to fight against the will of God are beaten.
14:1. Therefore the whole multitude crying wept that night.
14:2. And all the children of Israel murmured against Moses and Aaron, saying:
14:3. Would God that we had died in Egypt: and would God we may die in this vast wilderness, and that the Lord may not bring us into this land, lest we fall by the sword, and our wives and children be led away captives. Is it not better to return into Egypt?
14:4. And they said one to another: Let us appoint a captain, and let us return into Egypt.
14:5. And when Moses and Aaron heard this, they fell down flat upon the ground before the multitude of the children of Israel.
14:6. But Josue the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephone, who themselves also had viewed the land, rent their garments,
14:7. And said to all the multitude of the children of Israel: The land which we have gone round is very good:
14:8. If the Lord be favourable, he will bring us into it, and give us a land flowing with milk and honey.
14:9. Be not rebellious against the Lord: and fear ye not the people of this land, for we are able to eat them up as bread. All aid is gone from them: the Lord is with us, fear ye not.
14:10. And when all the multitude cried out, and would have stoned them, the glory of the Lord appeared over the tabernacle of the covenant to all the children of Israel.
14:11. And the Lord said to Moses: How long will this people detract me? how long will they not believe me for all the signs that I have wrought before them?
14:12. I will strike them therefore with pestilence, and will consume them: but thee I will make a ruler over a great nation, and a mightier than this is.
14:13. And Moses said to the Lord: That the Egyptians, from the midst of whom thou hast brought forth this people,
14:14. And the inhabitants of this land, (who have heard that thou, O Lord, art among this people, and art seen face to face, and thy cloud protecteth them, and thou goest before them in a pillar of a cloud by day, and in a pillar of fire by night,)
14:15. May hear that thou hast killed so great a multitude as it were one man and may say:
14:16. He could not bring the people into the land for which he had sworn, therefore did he kill them in the wilderness.
14:17. Let then the strength of the Lord be magnified, as thou hast sworn, saying:
14:18. The Lord is patient and full of mercy, by taking away iniquity and wickedness, and leaving no man clear, who visitest the sins of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation.
Clear… i. e., who deserves punishment.
14:19. Forgive, I beseech thee, the sins of this people, according to the greatness of thy mercy, as thou hast been merciful to them from their going out of Egypt unto this place.
14:20. And the Lord said: I have forgiven according to thy word.
14:21. As I live: and the whole earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord.
14:22. But yet all the men that have seen my majesty, and the signs that I have done in Egypt, and in the wilderness, and have tempted me now ten times, and have not obeyed my voice,
14:23. Shall not see the land for which I swore to their fathers, neither shall any one of them that hath detracted me behold it.
14:24. My servant Caleb, who being full of another spirit hath followed me, I will bring into this land which he hath gone round: and his seed shall possess it.
14:25. For the Amalecite and the Chanaanite dwell in the valleys. To morrow remove the camp, and return into the wilderness by the way of the Red Sea.
14:26. And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying:
14:27. How long doth this wicked multitude murmur against me? I have heard the murmurings of the children of Israel.
14:28. Say therefore to them: As I live, saith the Lord: According as you have spoken in my hearing, so will I do to you.
14:29. In the wilderness shall your carcasses lie. All you that were numbered from twenty years old and upward, and have murmured against me,
14:30. Shall not enter into the land, over which I lifted up my hand to make you dwell therein, except Caleb the son of Jephone, and Josue the son of Nun.
14:31. But your children, of whom you said, that they should be a prey to the enemies, will I bring in: that they may see the land which you have despised.
14:32. Your carcasses shall lie in the wilderness.
14:33. Your children shall wander in the desert forty years, and shall bear your fornication, until the carcasses of their fathers be consumed in the desert,
Shall bear your fornication… That is, shall bear the punishment of your disloyalty to God, which in the scripture language is here called a fornication, in a spiritual sense.
14:34. According to the number of the forty days, wherein you viewed the land: a year shall be counted for a day. And forty years you shall receive your iniquities, and shall know my revenge:
14:35. For as I have spoken, so will I do to all this wicked multitude, that hath risen up together against me: in this wilderness shall it faint away and die.
14:36. Therefore all the men, whom Moses had sent to view the land, and who at their return had made the whole multitude to murmur against him, speaking ill of the land that it was naught,
14:37. Died and were struck in the sight of the Lord.
14:38. But Josue the son of Nun, and Caleb had gone to view the land.
14:39. And Moses spoke all these words to all the children of Israel, and the people mourned exceedingly.
14:40. And behold rising up very early in the morning, they went up to the top of the mountain, and said: We are ready to go up to the place, of which the Lord hath spoken: for we have sinned.
14:41. And Moses said to them: Why transgress you the word of the Lord, which shall not succeed prosperously with you?
14:42. Go not up, for the Lord is not with you: lest you fall before your enemies.
14:43. The Amalecite and the Chanaanite are before you, and by their sword you shall fall, because you would not consent to the Lord, neither will the Lord be with you.
14:44. But they being blinded went up to the top of the mountain. But the ark of the testament of the Lord and Moses departed not from the camp.
14:45. And the Amalecite came down, and the Chanaanite that dwelt in the mountain: and smiting and slaying them pursued them as far as Horma.
Numbers Chapter 15
Certain laws concerning sacrifices. Sabbath breaking is punished with death. The law of fringes on their garments.
15:1. And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
15:2. Speak to the children of Israel and thou shalt say to them: When you shall be come unto the land of your habitation, which I will give you,
15:3. And shall make an offering to the Lord, for a holocaust, or a victim, paying your vows, or voluntarily offering gifts, or in your solemnities burning a sweet savour unto the Lord, of oxen or of sheep:
15:4. Whosoever immolateth the victim, shall offer a sacrifice of fine flour, the tenth part of an ephi, tempered with the fourth part of a hin of oil:
15:5. And he shall give the same measure of wine to pour out in libations for the holocaust or for the victim. For every lamb,
15:6. And for every ram there shall be a sacrifice of flour of two tenths, which shall be tempered with the third part of a hin of oil:
15:7. And he shall offer the third part the same measure of wine for the libation, for a sweet savour to the Lord.
15:8. But when thou offerest a holocaust or sacrifice of oxen, to fulfil thy vow or for victims of peace offerings,
15:9. Thou shalt give for every ox three tenths of flour tempered with half a hin of oil,
15:10. And wine for libations of the same measure, for an offering of most sweet savour to the Lord.
15:11. Thus shalt thou do
15:12. For every ox and ram and lamb and kid.
15:13. Both they that are born in the land, and the strangers
15:14. Shall offer sacrifices after the same rite.
15:15. There shall be all one law and judgment both for you and for them who are strangers in the land.
15:16. And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
15:17. Speak to the children of Israel, and thou shalt say to them:
15:18. When you are come into the land which I will give you,
15:19. And shall eat of the bread of that country, you shall separate firstfruits to the Lord,
15:20. Of the things you eat. As you separate firstfruits of your barnfloors:
15:21. So also shall you give firstfruits of your dough to the Lord.
15:22. And if through ignorance you omit any of these things, which the Lord hath spoken to Moses,
15:23. And by him hath commanded you from the day that he began to command and thenceforward,
15:24. And the multitude have forgotten to do it: they shall offer a calf out of the herd, a holocaust for a most sweet savour to the Lord, and the sacrifice and libations thereof, as the ceremonies require, and a buck goat for sin:
15:25. And the priest shall pray for all the multitude of the children of Israel: and it shall be forgiven them, because they sinned ignorantly, offering notwithstanding a burnt offering to the Lord for themselves and for their sin and their Ignorance:
15:26. And it shall be forgiven all the people of the children of Israel: and the strangers that sojourn among them: because it is the fault of all the people through ignorance.
15:27. But if one soul shall sin ignorantly, he shall offer a she goat of a year old for his sin.
15:28. And the priest shall pray for him, because he sinned ignorantly before the Lord: and he shall obtain his pardon, and it shall be forgiven him.
15:29. The same law shall be for all that sin by ignorance, whether they be natives or strangers.
15:30. But the soul that committeth any thing through pride, whether he be born in the land or a stranger (because he hath been rebellious against the Lord) shall be cut off from among his people:
15:31. For he hath contemned the word of the Lord, and made void his precept: therefore shall he be destroyed, and shall bear his iniquity.
15:32. And it came to pass, when the children of Israel were in the wilderness, and had found a man gathering sticks on the sabbath day,
15:33. That they brought him to Moses and Aaron and the whole multitude.
15:34. And they put him into prison, not knowing what they should do with him.
15:35. And the Lord said to Moses: Let that man die, let all the multitude stone him without the camp.
15:36. And when they had brought him out, they stoned him, and he died as the Lord had commanded.
15:37. The Lord also said to Moses:
15:38. Speak to the children of Israel, and thou shalt tell them to make to themselves fringes in the corners of their garments, putting in them ribands of blue:
Fringes… The Pharisees enlarged these fringes through hypocrisy, Matt. 23.5, to appear more zealous than other men for the law of God.
15:39. That when they shall see them, they may remember all the commandments of the Lord, and not follow their own thoughts and eyes going astray after divers things,
15:40. But rather being mindful of the precepts of the Lord, may do them and be holy to their God.
15:41. I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, that I might be your God.
Numbers Chapter 16
The schism of Core and his adherents: their punishment.
16:1. And behold Core the son of Isaar, the son of Caath, the son of Levi, and Dathan and Abiron the sons of Eliab, and Hon the son of Pheleth of the children of Ruben,
16:2. Rose up against Moses, and with them two hundred and fifty others of the children of Israel, leading men of the synagogue, and who in the time of assembly were called by name.
Rose up… The crime of these men, which was punished in so remarkable a manner, was that of schism, and of rebellion against the authority established by God in the church; and their pretending to the priesthood without being lawfully called and sent: the same is the case of all modern sectaries.
16:3. And when they had stood up against Moses and Aaron, they said: Let it be enough for you, that all the multitude consisteth of holy ones, and the Lord is among them: Why lift you up yourselves above the people of the Lord?
16:4. When Moses heard this, he fell flat on his face:
16:5. And speaking to Core and all the multitude, he said: In the morning the Lord will make known who belong to him, and the holy he will join to himself: and whom he shall choose, they shall approach to him.
16:6. Do this therefore: Take every man of you your censers, thou Core, and all thy company.
16:7. And putting fire in them to morrow, put incense upon it before the Lord: and whomsoever he shall choose, the same shall be holy: you take too much upon you, ye sons of Levi.
16:8. And he said again to Core: Hear ye sons of Levi.
16:9. Is it a small thing unto you, that the God of Israel hath spared you from all the people, and joined you to himself, that you should serve him in the service of the tabernacle, and should stand before the congregation of the people, and should minister to him?
16:10. Did he therefore make thee and all thy brethren the sons of Levi to approach unto him, that you should challenge to yourselves the priesthood also,
16:11. And that all thy company should stand against the Lord? for what is Aaron that you murmur against him?
16:12. Then Moses sent to call Dathan and Abiron the sons of Eliab. But they answered: We will not come.
16:13. Is it a small matter to thee, that thou hast brought us out of a land that flowed with milk and honey, to kill us in the desert, except thou rule also like a lord over us?
16:14. Thou hast brought us indeed into a land that floweth with rivers of milk and honey, and hast given us possessions of fields and vineyards; wilt thou also pull out our eyes? We will not come.
16:15. Moses therefore being very angry, said to the Lord: Respect not their sacrifices: thou knowest that I have not taken of them so much as a young ass at any time, nor have injured any of them.
Very angry… This anger was a zeal against sin; and an indignation at the affront offered to God; like that which the same holy prophet conceived upon the sight of the golden calf, Ex. 32.19.
16:16. And he said to Core: Do thou and thy congregation stand apart before the Lord to morrow, and Aaron apart.
16:17. Take every one of you censers, and put incense upon them, offering to the Lord two hundred and fifty censers: let Aaron also hold his censer.
16:18. When they had done this, Moses and Aaron standing,
16:19. And had drawn up all the multitude against them to the door of the tabernacle, the glory of the Lord appeared to them all.
16:20. And the Lord speaking to Moses and Aaron, said:
16:21. Separate yourselves from among this congregation, that I may presently destroy them.
16:22. They fell flat on their face, and said: O most mighty, the God of the spirits of all flesh, for one man's sin shall thy wrath rage against all?
16:23. And the Lord said to Moses:
16:24. Command the whole people to separate themselves from the tents of Core and Dathan and Abiron.
16:25. And Moses arose, and went to Dathan and Abiron: and the ancients of Israel following him,
16:26. He said to the multitude: Depart from the tents of these wicked men, and touch nothing of theirs, lest you be involved in their sins.
16:27. And when they were departed from their tents round about, Dathan and Abiron coming out stood in the entry of their pavilions with their wives and children, and all the people.
16:28. And Moses said: By this you shall know that the Lord hath sent me to do all things that you see, and that I have not forged them of my own head:
16:29. If these men die the common death of men, and if they be visited with a plague, wherewith others also are wont to be visited, the Lord did not send me.
16:30. But if the Lord do a new thing, and the earth opening her mouth swallow them down, and all things that belong to them, and they go down alive into hell, you shall know that they have blasphemed the Lord.
16:31. And immediately as he had made an end of speaking, the earth broke asunder under their feet:
16:32. And opening her mouth, devoured them with their tents and all their substance.
16:33. And they went down alive into hell, the ground closing upon them, and they perished from among the people.
16:34. But all Israel, that was standing round about, fled at the cry of them that were perishing: saying: Lest perhaps the earth swallow us up also.
16:35. And a fire coming out from the Lord, destroyed the two hundred and fifty men that offered the incense.
16:36. And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
16:37. Command Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest to take up the censers that lie in the burning, and to scatter the fire of one side and the other: because they are sanctified
16:38. In the deaths of the sinners: and let him beat them into plates, and fasten them to the altar, because incense hath been offered in them to the Lord, and they are sanctified, that the children of Israel may see them for a sign and a memorial.
16:39. Then Eleazar the priest took the brazen censers, wherein they had offered, whom the burning fire had devoured, and beat them into plates, fastening them to the altar:
16:40. That the children of Israel might have for the time to come wherewith they should be admonished, that no stranger or any one that is not of the seed of Aaron should come near to offer incense to the Lord, lest he should suffer as Core suffered, and all his congregation, according as the Lord spoke to Moses.
16:41. The following day all the multitude of the children of Israel murmured against Moses and Aaron, saying: You have killed the people of the Lord.
16:42. And when there arose a sedition, and the tumult increased,
16:43. Moses and Aaron fled to the tabernacle of the covenant. And when they were gone into it, the cloud covered it, and the glory of the Lord appeared.
16:44. And the Lord said to Moses:
16:45. Get you out from the midst of this multitude, this moment will I destroy them. And as they were lying on the ground,
16:46. Moses said to Aaron: Take the censer, and putting fire in it from the altar, put incense upon it, and go quickly to the people to pray for them: for already wrath is gone out from the Lord, and the plague rageth.
16:47. When Aaron had done this, and had run to the midst of the multitude which the burning fire was now destroying, he offered the incense:
16:48. And standing between the dead and the living, he prayed for the people, and the plague ceased.
16:49. And the number of them that were slain was fourteen thousand and seven hundred men, besides them that had perished in the sedition of Core.
16:50. And Aaron returned to Moses to the door of the tabernacle of the covenant after the destruction was over.
Numbers Chapter 17
The priesthood is confirmed to Aaron by the miracle of the blooming of his rod, which is kept for a monument in the tabernacle.
17:1. And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
17:2. Speak to the children of Israel, and take of every one of them a rod by their kindreds, of all the princes of the tribes, twelve rods, and write the name of every man upon his rod.
17:3. And the name of Aaron shall be for the tribe of Levi, and one rod shall contain all their families:
17:4. And thou shalt lay them up in the tabernacle of the covenant before the testimony, where I will speak to thee.
17:5. Whomsoever of these I shall choose, his rod shall blossom: and I will make to cease from me the murmurings of the children of Israel, wherewith they murmur against you.
17:6. And Moses spoke to the children of Israel: and all the princes gave him rods one for every tribe: and there were twelve rods besides the rod of Aaron.
17:7. And when Moses had Laid them up before the Lord in the tabernacle of the testimony:
17:8. He returned on the following day, and found that the rod of Aaron for the house of Levi, was budded: and that the buds swelling it hid bloomed blossoms, which spreading the leaves, were formed into almonds.
The rod of Aaron for the house of Levi, was budded, etc… This rod of Aaron which thus miraculously brought forth fruit, was a figure of the blessed Virgin conceiving and bringing forth her Son without any prejudice to her virginity.
17:9. Moses therefore brought out all the rods from before the Lord to all the children of Israel: and they saw, and every one received their rods.
17:10. And the Lord said to Moses: Carry back the rod of Aaron into the tabernacle of the testimony, that it may be kept there for a token of the rebellious children of Israel, and that their complaints may cease from me lest they die.
17:11. And Moses did as the Lord had commanded.
17:12. And the children of Israel said to Moses: Behold we are consumed, we all perish.
17:13. Whosoever approacheth to the tabernacle of the Lord, he dieth. Are we all to a man to be utterly destroyed?
Numbers Chapter 18
The charge of the priests and of the Levites, and their portion.
18:1. And the Lord said to Aaron: Thou, and thy sons, and thy father's house with thee shall bear the iniquity of the sanctuary: and thou and thy sons with thee shall bear the sins of your priesthood.
Thou, and thy father's house with thee, shall bear the iniquity of the sanctuary… That is, you shall be punished if, through negligence or want of due attention, you err in the discharge of the sacred functions for which you were ordained.
18:2. And take with thee thy brethren also of the tribe of Levi, and the sceptre of thy father, and let them be ready in hand, and minister to thee: but thou and thy sons shall minister in the tabernacle of the testimony.
18:3. And the Levites shall watch to do thy commands, and about all the works of the tabernacle: only they shall not come nigh the vessels of the sanctuary nor the altar, lest both they die, and you also perish with them.
18:4. But let them be with thee, and watch in the charge of the tabernacle, and in all the ceremonies thereof. A stranger shall not join himself with you.
18:5. Watch ye in the charge of the sanctuary, and in the ministry of the altar: lest indignation rise upon the children of Israel.
18:6. I have given you your brethren the Levites from among the children of Israel, and have delivered them for a gift to the Lord, to serve in the ministries of the tabernacle.
18:7. But thou and thy sons look ye to the priesthood: and all things that pertain to the service of the altar, and that are within the veil, shall be executed by the priests. If any stranger shall approach, he shall be slain.
18:8. And the Lord said to Aaron: Behold I have given thee the charge of my firstfruits. All things that are sanctified by the children of Israel, I have delivered to thee and to thy sons for the priestly office, by everlasting ordinances.
18:9. These therefore shalt thou take of the things that are sanctified, and are offered to the Lord. Every offering, and sacrifice, and whatsoever is rendered to me for sin and for trespass, and becometh holy of holies, shall be for thee and thy sons.
18:10. Thou shalt eat it in the sanctuary: the males only shall eat thereof, because it is a consecrated thing to thee.
18:11. But the firstfruits, which the children of Israel shall vow and offer, I have given to thee, and to thy sons, and to thy daughters, by a perpetual law. He that is clean in thy house, shall eat them.
18:12. All the best of the oil, and of the wine, and of the corn, whatsoever firstfruits they offer to the Lord, I have given them to thee.
18:13. All the firstripe of the fruits, that the ground bringeth forth, and which are brought to the Lord, shall be for thy use: he that is clean in thy house, shall eat them.
18:14. Every thing that the children of Israel shall give by vow, shall be thine.
18:15. Whatsoever is firstborn of all flesh, which they offer to the Lord, whether it be of men, or of beasts, shall belong to thee: only for the firstborn of man thou shalt take a price, and every beast that is unclean thou shalt cause to be redeemed,
18:16. And the redemption of it shall be after one month, for five sicles of silver, by the weight of the sanctuary. A sicle hath twenty obols.
18:17. But the firstling of a cow, and of a sheep and of a goat thou shalt not cause to be redeemed, because they are sanctified to the Lord. Their blood only thou shalt pour upon the altar, and their fat thou shalt burn for a most sweet odour to the Lord.
18:18. But the flesh shall fall to thy use, as the consecrated breast, and the right shoulder shall be thine.
18:19. All the firstfruits of the sanctuary which the children of Israel offer to the Lord, I have given to thee and to thy sons and daughters, by a perpetual ordinance. It is a covenant of salt for ever before the Lord, to thee and to thy sons.
A covenant of salt… It is a proverbial expression, signifying a covenant not to be altered or corrupted; as salt is used to keep things from corruption; a covenant perpetual, like that by which it was appointed, that salt should be used in every sacrifice. Lev. 2.
18:20. And the Lord said to Aaron: You shall possess nothing in their land, neither shall you have a portion among them: I am thy portion and inheritance in the midst of the children of Israel.
18:21. And I have given to the sons of Levi all the tithes of Israel for a possession, for the ministry wherewith they serve me in the tabernacle of the covenant:
18:22. That the children of Israel may not approach any more to the tabernacle, nor commit deadly sin,
Deadly sin… That is, sin which will bring death after it.
18:23. But only the sons of Levi may serve me in the tabernacle, and bear the sins of the people. It shall be an everlasting ordinance in your generations. They shall not possess any other thing,
18:24. But be content with the oblation or tithes, which I have separated for their uses and necessities.
18:25. And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
18:26. Command the Levites, and declare unto them: When you shall receive of the children of Israel the tithes, which I have given you, offer the firstfruits of them to the Lord, that is to say, the tenth part of the tenth:
18:27. That it may be reckoned to you as an oblation of firstfruits, as well of the barnfloors as of the winepresses:
18:28. And of all the things of which you receive tithes, offer the firstfruits to the Lord, and give them to Aaron the priest.
18:29. All the things that you shall offer of the tithes, and shall separate for the gifts of the Lord, shall be the best and choicest things.
18:30. And thou shalt say to them: If you offer all the goodly and the better things of the tithes, it shall be reckoned to you as if you had given the firstfruits of the barnfloor and the winepress:
18:31. And you shall eat them in all your places, both you and your families: because it is your reward for the ministry, wherewith you serve in the tabernacle of the testimony.
18:32. And you shall not sin in this point, by reserving the choicest and fat things to yourselves, lest you profane the oblations of the children of Israel, and die.
Numbers Chapter 19
The law of the sacrifice of the red cow, and the water of expiation.
19:1. And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying:
19:2. This is the observance of the victim, which the Lord hath ordained. Command the children of Israel, that they bring unto thee a red cow of full age, in which there is no blemish, and which hath not carried the yoke:
A red cow, etc… This red cow, offered in sacrifice for sin, and consumed with fire without the camp, with the ashes of which, mingled with water, the unclean were to be expiated and purified; was a figure of the passion of Christ, by whose precious blood applied to our souls in the holy sacraments, we are cleansed from our sins.
19:3. And you shall deliver her to Eleazar the priest, who shall bring her forth without the camp, and shall immolate her in the sight of all:
19:4. And dipping his finger in her blood, shall sprinkle it over against the door of the tabernacle seven times,
19:5. And shall burn her in the sight of all delivering up to the fire her skin, and her flesh, and her blood, and her dung.
19:6. The priest shall also take cedar wood, and hyssop, and scarlet twice dyed, and cast it into the flame, with which the cow is consumed.
19:7. And then after washing his garments, and body, he shall enter into the camp, and shall be unclean until the evening.
19:8. He also that hath burned her, shall wash his garments, and his body, and shall be unclean until the evening.
19:9. And a man that is clean shall gather up the ashes of the cow, and shall pour them forth without the camp in a most clean place, that they may be reserved for the multitude of the children of Israel, and for a water of aspersion: because the cow was burnt for sin.
19:10. And when he that carried the ashes of the cow, hath washed his garments, he shall be unclean until the evening. The children of Israel, and the strangers that dwell among them, shall observe this for a holy thing by a perpetual ordinance.
19:11. He that toucheth the corpse of a man, and is therefore unclean seven days,
19:12. Shall be sprinkled with this water on the third day, and on the seventh, and so shall be cleansed. If he were not sprinkled on the third day, he cannot be cleansed on the seventh.
19:13. Every one that toucheth the corpse of a man, and is not sprinkled with this mixture, shall profane the tabernacle of the Lord, and shall perish out of Israel: because he was not sprinkled with the water of expiation, he shall be unclean, and his uncleanness shall remain upon him.
19:14. This is the law of a man that dieth in a tent: All that go into his tent and all the vessels that are there, shall be unclean seven days.
19:15. The vessel that hath no cover, nor binding over it, shall be unclean.
19:16. If any man in the field touch the corpse of a man that was slain, or that died of himself, or his bone, or his grave, he shall be unclean seven days.
19:17. And they shall take of the ashes of the burning and of the sin offering, and shall pour living waters upon them into a vessel.
19:18. And a man that is clean shall dip hyssop in them, and shall sprinkle therewith all the tent, and all the furniture, and the men that are defiled with touching any such thing:
19:19. And in this manner he that is clean shall purify the unclean on the third and on the seventh day. And being expiated the seventh day, he shall wash both himself and his garments, and be unclean until the evening.
19:20. If any man be not expiated after this rite, his soul shall perish out of the midst of the church: because he hath profaned the sanctuary of the Lord, and was not sprinkled with the water of purification.
19:21. This precept shall be an ordinance for ever. He also that sprinkled the water, shall wash his garments. Every one that shall touch the waters of expiation, shall be unclean until the evening.
19:22. Whatsoever a person toucheth who is unclean, he shall make it unclean: and the person that toucheth any of these things, shall be unclean until the evening.
Numbers Chapter 20
The death of Mary the sister of Moses. The people murmur for want of water: God giveth it them from the rock. The death of Aaron.
20:1. And the children of Israel, and all the multitude came into the desert of Sin, in the first month: and the people abode in Cades. And Mary died there, and was buried in the same place.
20:2. And the people wanting water, came together against Moses and Aaron:
20:3. And making a sedition, they said: Would God we had perished among our brethren before the Lord.
20:4. Why have you brought out the church of the Lord into the wilderness, that both we and our cattle should die?
20:5. Why have you made us come up out of Egypt, and have brought us into this wretched place which cannot be sowed, nor bringeth forth figs, nor vines, nor pomegranates, neither is there any water to drink?
20:6. And Moses and Aaron leaving the multitude, went into the tabernacle of the covenant, and fell flat upon the ground, and cried to the Lord, and said. O Lord God, hear the cry of this people, and open to them thy treasure, a fountain of living water, that being satisfied, they may cease to murmur. And the glory of the Lord appeared over them.
20:7. And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
20:8. Take the rod, and assemble the people together, thou and Aaron thy brother, and speak to the rock before them, and it shall yield waters. And when thou hast brought forth water out of the rock, all the multitude and their cattle shall drink.
20:9. Moses therefore took the rod, which was before the Lord, as he had commanded him,
20:10. And having gathered together the multitude before the rock, he said to them: Hear, ye rebellious and incredulous: Can we bring you forth water out of this rock?
20:11. And when Moses bad lifted up his hand, and struck the rock twice with the rod, there came forth water in great abundance, so that the people and their cattle drank,
The rock… This rock was a figure of Christ, and the water that issued out from the rock, of his precious blood, the source of all our good.
20:12. And the Lord said to Moses and Aaron: Because you have not believed me, to sanctify me before the children of Israel, you shall not bring these people into the land, which I will give them.
You have not believed, etc… The fault of Moses and Aaron, on this occasion, was a certain diffidence and weakness of faith; not doubting of God's power or veracity; but apprehending the unworthiness of that rebellious and incredulous people, and therefore speaking with some ambiguity.
20:13. This is the Water of contradiction, where the children of Israel strove with words against the Lord, and he was sanctified in them.
The Water of contradiction… Or strife. Hebrew, Meribah.
20:14. In the mean time Moses sent messengers from Cades to the king of Edom, to say: Thus saith thy brother Israel: Thou knowest all the labour that hath come upon us:
20:15. In what manner our fathers went down into Egypt, and there we dwelt a long time, and the Egyptians afflicted us and our fathers.
20:16. And how we cried to the Lord, and he heard us, and sent an angel, who hath brought us out of Egypt. Lo, we are now in the city of Cades, which is in the uttermost of thy borders,
20:17. And we beseech thee that we may have leave to pass through thy country. We will not go through the fields, nor through the vineyards, we will not drink the waters of thy wells, but we will go by the common highway, neither turning aside to the right hand, nor to the left, till we are past thy borders.
20:18. And Edom answered them: Thou shalt not pass by me: if thou dost I will come out armed against thee.
20:19. And the children of Israel said: We will go by the beaten way: and if we and our cattle drink of thy waters, we will give thee what is just: there shall be no difficulty in the price, only let us pass speedily.
20:20. But he answered: Thou shalt not pass. And immediately he came forth to meet them with an infinite multitude, and a strong hand,
20:21. Neither would he condescend to their desire to grant them passage through his borders. Wherefore Israel turned another way from him.
20:22. And when they had removed the camp from Cades, they came to mount Hor, which is in the borders of the land of Edom:
20:23. Where the Lord spoke to Moses:
20:24. Let Aaron, saith he, go to his people: for he shall not go into the land which I have given the children of Israel, because he was incredulous to my words, at the waters of contradiction.
20:25. Take Aaron and his son with him, and bring them up into mount Hor:
20:26. And when thou hast stripped the father of his vesture, thou shalt vest therewith Eleazar his son: Aaron shall be gathered to his people, and die there.
20:27. Moses did as the Lord had commanded: and they went up into mount Hor before all the multitude.
20:28. And when he had stripped Aaron of his vestments, he vested Eleazar his son with them.
20:29. And Aaron being dead in the top of the mountain, he came down with Eleazar.
20:30. And all the multitude seeing that Aaron was dead, mourned for him thirty days throughout all their families.
Numbers Chapter 21
King Arad is overcome. The people murmur and are punished with fiery serpents: they are healed by the brazen serpent. They conquer the kings Sehon and Og.
21:1. And when king Arad the Chanaanite, who dwelt towards the south, had heard this, to wit, that Israel was come by the way of the spies, he fought against them, and overcoming them carried off their spoils.
21:2. But Israel binding himself by vow to the Lord, said: If thou wilt deliver thus people into my hand, I will utterly destroy their cities.
21:3. And the Lord heard the prayers of Israel, and delivered up the Chanaanite, and they cut them off and destroyed their cities: and they called the name of that place Horma, that is to say, Anathema.
Anathema… That is, a thing devoted to utter destruction.
21:4. And they marched from mount Hor, by the way that leadeth to the Red Sea, to compass the land of Edom. And the people began to be weary of their journey and labour:
21:5. And speaking against God and Moses, they said: Why didst thou bring us out of Egypt, to die in the wilderness? There is no bread, nor have we any waters: our soul now loatheth this very light food.
Very light food… So they call the heavenly manna: thus worldlings loathe the things of heaven, for which they have no relish.
21:6. Wherefore the Lord sent among the people fiery serpents, which bit them and killed many of them.
Fiery serpents… They are so called, because they that were bitten by them were burnt with a violent heat.
21:7. Upon which they came to Moses, and said; We have sinned, because we have spoken against the Lord and thee: pray that he may take away these serpents from us. And Moses prayed for the people.
21:8. And the Lord said to him: Make a brazen serpent, and set it up for a sign: whosoever being struck shall look on it, shall live.
21:9. Moses therefore made a brazen serpent, and set it up for a sign: which when they that were bitten looked upon, they were healed.
A brazen serpent… This was a figure of Christ crucified, and of the efficacy of a lively faith in him, against the bites of the hellish serpent. John 3.14.
21:10. And the children of Israel setting forwards camped in Oboth.
21:11. And departing thence they pitched their tents in Jeabarim, in the wilderness, that faceth Moab toward the east.
21:12. And removing from thence, they came to the torrent Zared:
21:13. Which they left and encamped over against Arnon, which is in the desert and standeth out on the borders of the Amorrhite. For Arnon is the border of Moab, dividing the Moabites and the Amorrhites.
21:14. Wherefore it is said in the book of the wars of the Lord: As he did in the Red Sea, so will he do in the streams of Arnon.
The book of the wars, etc… An ancient book, which, like several others quoted in scripture, has been lost.
21:15. The rocks of the torrents were bowed down that they might rest in Ar, and lie down in the borders of the Moabites.
21:16. When they went from that place, the well appeared whereof the Lord said to Moses: Gather the people together, and I will give them water.
21:17. Then Israel sung this song: Let the well spring up. They sung thereto:
21:18. The well, which the princes dug, and the chiefs of the people prepared by the direction of the lawgiver, and with their staves. And they marched from the wilderness to Mathana.
21:19. From Mathana unto Nahaliel: from Nahaliel unto Bamoth.
21:20. From Bamoth, is a valley in the country of Moab, to the top of Phasga, which looked towards the desert.
21:21. And Israel sent messengers to Sehon king of the Amorrhites, saying:
21:22. I beseech thee that I may have leave to pass through thy land: we will not go aside into the fields or the vineyards, we will not drink waters of the wells, we will go the king's highway, till we be past thy borders.
21:23. And he would not grant that Israel should pass by his borders: but rather gathering an army, went forth to meet them in the desert, and came to Jasa and fought against them.
21:24. And he was slain by them with the edge of the sword, and they possessed his land from the Arnon unto the Jeboc, and to the confines of the children of Ammon: for the borders of the Ammonites, were kept with a strong garrison.
21:25. So Israel took all his cities, and dwelt in the cities of the Amorrhite, to wit, in Hesebon, and in the villages thereof.
21:26. Hesebon was the city of Sehon the king of the Amorrhites, who fought against the king of Moab: and took all the land, that had been of his dominion, as far as the Arnon.
21:27. Therefore it is said in the proverb: Come into Hesebon, let the city of Sehon be built and set up:
21:28. A fire is gone out of Hesebon, a flame from the city of Sehon, and hath consumed Ar of the Moabites, and the inhabitants of the high places of the Arnon.
21:29. Woe to thee Moab: thou art undone, O people of Chamos. He hath given his sons to flight, and his daughters into captivity to Sehon the king of the Amorrhites.
21:30. Their yoke is perished from Hesebon unto Dibon, they came weary to Nophe, and unto Medaba.
21:31. So Israel dwelt in the land of the Amorrhite.
21:32. And Moses sent some to take a view of Jazer: and they took the villages of it, and conquered the inhabitants.
21:33. And they turned themselves, and went up by the way of Basan, and Og the king of Basan came against them with all his people, to fight in Edrai.
21:34. And the Lord said to Moses: Fear him not, for I have delivered him and all his people, and his country into thy hand: and thou shalt do to him as thou didst to Sehon the king of the Amorrhites, the inhabitant of Hesebon.
21:35. So they slew him also with his sons, and all his people, not letting any one escape, and they possessed his land.
Numbers Chapter 22
Balac, king of Moab, sendeth twice for Balaam to curse Israel. In his way Balaam is rebuked by an angel.
22:1. And they went forward and encamped in the plains of Moab, over against where Jericho is situate beyond the Jordan.
22:2. And Balac the son of Sephor, seeing all that Israel had done to the Amorrhite,
22:3. And that the Moabites were in great fear of him, and were not able to sustain his assault,
22:4. He said to the elders of Madian: So will this people destroy all that dwell in our borders, as the ox is wont to eat the grass to the very roots. Now he was at that time king in Moab.
22:5. He sent therefore messengers to Balaam the son of Beor, a soothsayer, who dwelt by the river of the land of the children of Ammon, to call him, and to say: Behold a people is come out of Egypt, that hath covered the face of the earth, sitting over against me.
22:6. Come therefore, and curse this people, because it is mightier than I: if by any means I may beat them and drive them out of my land: for I know that he whom thou shalt bless is blessed, and he whom thou shalt curse is cursed.